Businesses 'must target CO2 cuts'

Government and business must work together to tackle carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, an environment minister said today.

Phil Woolas said that steps must be taken to help the environment without jeopardising prosperity.

His comments follow the publication of a consultation on measures to simplify the regulations businesses face in reducing CO2 emissions.

Mr Woolas said that the consultation would make sure the UK gets "the biggest cuts in CO2 for the money spent" and has come in response to requests from businesses who want to cut emissions but find existing regulations complex and confusing.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) will look at a new package of measures to cut duplication and unduly complex bureaucracy and how to cut costs for businesses while making it easier for them to cut emissions.

Reducing CO2 emissions is key to limiting climate change and was one of the main issues debated at the UN talks on global warming in Bali.

"We must make the most cost-effective emissions cuts, and we must prove to the world that fighting climate change is compatible with economic growth," Mr Woolas commented.